The thesis is a thorough empirical study of discourses, fantasies, and patterns of interaction in highinvolvement
knowledge work. My interest in the issue was sparked by a fascination with the intensity
and contradictory nature of working life for many high-skilled workers. I was curious about the
ambiguities and paradoxes existing within the same dynamic, and I was puzzled by the fact that such
tension-ridden and precarious machinery could keep functioning despite its constant episodes of
breakdown – be they emotional or organizational. My intention was to find a gaze and a language
which could capture these ambiguities and tensions, rather than insisting on classical dualisms such as
profit versus meaning, instrumentality versus authenticity, power versus freedom, and influence versus
vulnerability......